French Engineer Quotes

Alain Robbe-Grillet

Lazare Carnot

Octave Chanute

Let us hope that the advent of a successful flying machine, now only dimly foreseen and nevertheless thought to be possible, will bring nothing but good into the world; that it shall abridge distance, make all parts of the globe accessible, bring men into closer relation with each other, advance civilization, and hasten the promised era in which there shall be nothing but peace and goodwill among all men.

All benefits of the sales of the American version of this book that I wrote... will be for the 90th Division Veterans Association, now and forever.

The art of the novel, however, has fallen into such a state of stagnation - a lassitude acknowledged and discussed by the whole of critical opinion - that it is hard to imagine such an art can survive for long without some radical change. To many, the solution seems simple enough: such a change being impossible, the art of the novel is dying.

Alain Robbe-Grillet

In a free country there is much clamor with little suffering; in a despotic state there is little complaint, but much grievance.

Some people will say that a respect for regulations is essential and that engineers need not check the hypotheses on which they are based. This is a convenient theory, but a false one. Men who draw up regulations can be wrong like other men.

Eugène Freyssinet

I have had no other book than the sky and the earth, which is known to all, and it is given to all to know and read in this beautiful book.... That is why a man who works in the art of the earth is always learning because of unknown natures, and diversity of earths.

Bernard Palissy